Best in Social Awards – 2014

Written ByGuest

January 15, 2015

Can you believe it is 2015 already? Neither can we. 2014 flew by in a whirlwind of new tools, new platforms, and marketing innovation that really changed how we as marketers reach our audiences. Here at Quattro, we noticed a major change in many of our core competencies from the traditional, direct mail channels to digital marketing campaigns across all channels. Social was no exception. One of the best ways to build your brand is through social media, and let’s be honest, there were some brands that nailed it last year. Through creative campaigns or unique channel opportunities, brands have stepped up their social media marketing game and it’s time to honor the year’s best platforms and social moments.

Check out our winners below!

Best Use of a Social Trend: Samsung - Ellen DeGeneres ‘ Oscars Selfie

Selfies are everywhere. Admit it, you’ve taken a few this year – and that’s ok, we have too.

And I’m sure if you turned on your computer or television this year, you saw this one too.

Ellen hosted the Oscars this year, and was just as charming as ever. She used her dance moves and corny jokes to liven up the awards show considered to be Hollywood’s biggest night. And, of course, in the true spirit of sponsorship, the ads were alive and well during the commercial breaks. But one ad made its way into the show, in what can perhaps be called the most famous selfie of all time.

How was this an ad? Easy, the notorious photo was taken with a Samsung Galaxy S5, the latest phone in the Samsung product line. It features A-List celebrities in a candid moment that reached 47 million program viewers and 37 million through Ellen’s tweet alone. Pure genius.

Best Up-and-Coming Social Platform – Snapchat

Snapchat gets a special nod this year in our awards. If you’re unfamiliar with the service, users can send images or videos that can be altered with text and drawings to their friends. The recipients in turn can view the content for a limited amount of time, determined by the sender. The platform has risen in popularity over the past few years, and companies like Facebook have taken notice, even offering an acquisition of $3 Billion that was turned down.

Snapchat is definitely popular with the younger crowd – 71% of its 100 million monthly active users are under the age of 25, and on average send 400 million snaps (or photos) a day. That’s a staggering amount of activity.

Brands, smart brands anyway, are starting to capitalize on this vast community of young people for marketing purposes, and we think that we’ll be seeing a lot more following suit in 2015.

Some brands who are using Snapchat effectively are Taco Bell, MTV, General Electric, and the Association of Surfing Professionals.

Best Real Time Social Moment– Arby’s and Pharrell Williams’ Hat

At this year’s Grammy awards, superstar Pharrell had a lot to be happy about.

We know. We’re hilarious.

But in all seriousness, the back and forth that resulted from a fashion statement made by Pharrell at the event will go down in history, much like the Oreo Super Bowl moment of 2013.

Essentially, Pharrell wore the hat pictured, and Arby’s jumped on the moment with the perfect response that gained their Twitter account almost 120K unique engagements and 169 million potential impressions. The conversation eventually led to Arby’s actually purchasing the hat in a charity auction, giving the brand even more exposure while supporting a good cause. See the exchanges below. Brilliant.

Let us know in the comments below if you agree or disagree with our winners, or have any other awards you’d give out. We can’t wait to see what conversations and social innovation 2015 brings!